John offers a kind of proof text on love in 1John 3:16, which is a parallel to John 3:16. He tells his readers “hereby we know” love: because he laid down his life for us. This is the very antithesis of 1John 3:12 wherein Cain is said to have murdered his brother, because his brother’s works were more righteous than his. In other words, Abel’s religion was more godly than Cain’s! In contrast to Cain, Christ gave up his own life for our benefit, and not ours only but also for the world’s benefit (1John 2:2), no matter what their religious beliefs and practices might be! How’s that for Love (cp. 1John 4:16)?
John uses the phrase hereby we know, which is used only three times in the New Covenant text, all by John and all in chapter three (1John 3:16, 19, 24). Each time he uses the phrase he puts forth a kind of proof for what he claims is true. In verse-16 John claims we know and understand love, and the proof is our recognition of Jesus’ sacrifice, that he died to save us from our rebellion against God and to give us eternal life (cp. 1John 3:4 and 1John 2:25; 5:11-13). In verse-19 John claims we are of the Truth (cp. John 14:6), and the proof that we are of him is that we live like him, in that we have compassion upon our brethren and share what we have to benefit them (1John 3:17-18). John’s final proof text is subjective, not objective, as is true in verses 16 & 19. In verse-24 John tells his readers that Jesus lives in us and the proof of this claim is the Spirit of God that dwells within us. Just as man is able to perceive that his understanding is far more powerful and authoritative than that of animals (1Corinthians 2:11), so believers are able to perceive their understanding of spiritual matters (1Corinthians 2:9-13) is for more powerful and authoritative that folks who do not have the Sprit of God (1Corinthians 2:14).
Therefore, just as animals are unable to judge the works of man, but men are able to judge the habits of animals, so the natural man is unable to judge the spiritual works of believers, yet the believer is able to judge the evil works of the natural man (1Corinthians 2:15), because believers, not the natural man, have the mind of Christ (1Corinthians 2:16).
We are able to put this another way by saying, if we look into a mirror, we are able to see the image of ourselves, and that image **must** reflect our appearance and follow what we do accurately. A problem arises in the fact that the image of God (Genesis 1:27) is a different kind of mirror. The image of God in the mirror (viz. the world) has been given freedom to choose to behave as God behaves or not to do so! Adam chose not to do so, but Jesus came to undo what Adam had done (cp. 1John 3:8). So, in the Kingdom of God, images behave like real images, and they reflect the true nature of God.
Paul used the metaphor of a mirror to show how we, as the images of God, are changed from being rebels into the children of God who are submissive to his nature, and thereby reflect him as he intended from the very beginning of time (cp. Genesis 1:27). In 2Corinthians 3 Paul contrasts the Mosaic Covenant with the New Covenant. The Mosaic Covenant is pictured in the fact that when Moses actually beheld the Lord (his backside), his (i.e. Moses’) face began to shine (i.e. it lit up thus reflecting the Light; 2Corinthians 3:7; cp. 1John 1:5), but the sad thing about the Mosaic Covenant is that the children of Israel couldn’t bear to look upon Moses face (viz. Genesis 3:23-24). He, therefore, put a veil over his face, because the glory of that covenant faded (2Corinthians 3:13). This signified that the minds of men are blind to spiritual matters, until they open their hearts to Christ (2Corinthians 3:14-16). Nevertheless, believers who have turned to Christ are able to behold the glory of the Lord and not turn away (2Corinthians 3:18), and because we do, we are changed into the image of Christ (cp. Genesis 1:27), not completely or all at once, but from glory to glory by the Spirit of the Lord, who is Christ in us, our hope of glory (2Corinthians 3:17-18; cp. Colossians 1:27).
A close look at 1John 3:17 implies that something was going on about the time of his epistle (cir. 62-63 AD) that caused some believers to turn away from their brethren in need. Why would this be true? Even the Old Covenant encouraged sharing ones goods with needy brethren. The only answer I am able to perceive is that John was writing during a time of persecution, whereby deceivers had convinced some brethren to embrace the new Judaism, which was anti-Christ.[1]
Therefore, John put a face on love, showing how God is Love (cp. 1John 4:16), and that, if we are to image God (Genesis 1:27), we must image Christ (1John 3:16; cp. John 15:2), God in the flesh (John 1:1, 14), for it makes little sense to merely **say** we love those in need, while at the same time holding back what they require in order to satisfy the necessities of life (cp. 1John 3:18; James 2:14-17; 4:17).
_______________________________________
[1] See my earlier studies: The Myth of the Unsuccessful Messiah; The False Argument of Right Doctrine; and The False Argument of Blamelessness.
Smoodock's Blog 